NAZ AKMAN- Financed by the European Union (EU) and implemented by the Association of Journalists “Media for Democracy/Democracy for Media Programme” continues to host speakers at the Press House. Sedat Örsel was the first guest of October and gave important information about “The Importance of Rhetoric and Body Language in Journalism”.

Örsel emphasized the importance of body language and rhetoric and provided the necessary components of good rhetoric and said “For this [sic] you need a good orator, an interested crowd, a common topic and language. Why are rhetoric and body language important for journalists? Because we can’t talk. We’re in this situation because we can’t talk. The world’s most beautiful language is Turkish but despite this we can’t speak it. When I was young, people used 300 words a day but today we barely use 50 words”.

Association of Journalists Chairman Nazmi Bilgin made the opening speech by saying “We all know Örsel’s creative side. I follow his writings, he uses language magnificently, I’m quite envious. His conferences are of equal importance and effect. All things aside, Örsel’s view of art is another aspect I admire. When I look at his steel statues I ask myself how can someone give so much meaning to steel. When I look at this conference room I notice how hungry our generation is for knowledge. Örsel, who an incredible amount of talent, must have fallen out of space.”

Who is Sedat Örsel?

When presenting Örsel, M4D Assistant Director Seva Ülman mentioned his multi-faceted personality by saying “Sedat Örsel was among the team that first started broadcasting in TRT in 1967 and produced many dramas. He received training in Scotland, Japan and BBC on TV broadcasting, administration and stage management. Alongside working as a producer for TRT he worked as the founder and manager of Kültür Publications, Eğitim Merkezi, Dış Yapımlar, TRT-INT and Avrasya TV. He has travelled the world many times and sold TRT productions for the first time to international film and television markets. He has co-produced many programmes for foreign TV stations. In 1992 he retired from TRT, where we worked for 25 years, as manager of the TV Department and Deputy Director General. He also was general coordinator of “Alo Bilgi Grubu” in 1992, and in 1993 he became founding Director General of Time-Wanter, Canale Plus Partnership and EKO TV (Now CNN Türk) at Koç Holding. Örsel has also given lectures and seminars at various universities, notably Bilgi University, since 1977. He continues to consult on copyright issues, television management, media relations, crisis management, rhetoric and body language. Örsel, along with Sedat Simavi, has been given 15 awards as TV producer and manager, so far. Örsel is also known for his metal sculptures.”

“No matter what you do, speak well”

Örsel, who has been working as a journalist for 50 years, and has been active in the television industry for 43 years highlighted the importance of rhetoric and body language. He said “The best job in the world is journalism. This is my 50^th year in the profession, I’ve been in the TV industry for 43 years. This will be my 336^th conference. I give training to media students, and I’ve taught about body language from actors to politicians. No matter what you do, speak well. Journalism is a colourful, exciting profession. Sometimes you might have to “suddenly” speak to a distinguished crowd. Most of the time though, you will have to ask someone “not so distinguished” a question. It’s difficult to hide when this happens. The biggest problem here is shyness. If you’re not a good orator, you’re going to have a difficult time. Someone who speaks well can transform a difficult situation into applause.”

“For the ideal voice, you shouldn’t speak more than 164 words per minute”

Örsel commented that for good rhetoric one needs a good voice “Whether it is a conference, speech or seminar the speaker must have a good and listenable voice. Bad, rough and vulgar voices bother the listeners. The tone, colour, level and tempo of our voice is quickly analysed and interpreted by the listener. The brain can process someone’s voice in a fifth of a second! Our voices give us a away instantaneously. It is our signature. We can tell if someone is balanced, upbeat, friendly by a simple “hello”. So, what is a good voice? British scientists analysed 50 people who are purported to have good voices. The research was conducted through a mathematical formula based on sound, speed, frequency, rate of words and tone. The scientists came to the conclusion that for the ideal voice one should not speak more than 164 words per minute, and must pause for 0.48 seconds between each sentence if possible. Speakers who abide by the 164 words and 0.48 seconds rule, even if they don’t have a good voice, are considered to be listenable.”

“The ingredients of good rhetoric”

According to Örsel, specialists have said there are four main principles to focus on for good rhetoric “For good rhetoric it is said you need a good orator, an interested audience, a mutual subject and mutual language. A good speaker should break the ice at the beginning of the speech, if need be. The main principle is to align words in systematic and fluent order. In order to get the attention of the listeners, one needs to use an effective approach. The length of the speech should be set prior to giving it, and the speaker should stick to the designated time. The pace of the speech is important, too; listeners don’t like it when the speaker drags on with the speech or rambles on like a machine gun. Words are the puppets of a master of rhetoric. A good orator does not speak the words of others, they carefully select the words they are going to use. Mispronounced words can cause laughter among the audience.” Örsel also talked about the importance of body language in the business world, he mentioned that in communication words are 7-10% effective, voice and speech play 30-38% effectiveness and body language play 55-60% effectiveness. Örsel also mentioned that gestures and facial expressions have become a science: “The main requisite of a good speech is rhetoric. This can be taught, corrected and developed in a short space of time. The right method and determination can bring success. The second requisite is a good audience. It’s very important for the audience to have a common interest in the subject. I good orator knows about common subjects of interest like literature, history, philosophy and art. In a lingually heterogenous society, the common form of communication people resort to are “language” and “dialect”.

The most widespread dialect we use is the “Istanbul dialect”. We, of course, can express ourselves without words. In communication jargon we call this “wordless communication” or “body language”. This language is conveyed through gesture, facial expressions and attitude. In good communication, body language is more important than words. We can tell by facial expressions that meaning of the news will be warped. People can argue without saying a single word through facial expressions. The whole world can tell if a world leader is going to say by their facial expression. Face reading has become a science. Dr. Mac Fulfer first interpreted the function of 43 different muscles of his own face. Apparently his forehead line was Einstein, and his ears were diplomatic! Our interpretations are different, in Turkish we say a nose is like a nut, a mouth is like cherry, eyes are like almonds and one’s speech is like honey. These days during job interviews, rather than look at the CV of the applicant, body language reports and specialist analyses are taken into account.”